The Name Game

The next question I keep hearing is: What is his name?

My answer? Good question.

We will keep Yin Tao (or Yintao) as his middle name (just like we did with Kate's Chinese name - Xuna). And for now, we call him Yin Tao or TaoTao (you know, like NaNa). But as for his first name, we just haven't decided yet. Tim has names that he really likes, that I don't care for. And I have names I like, but he really does not like. And we have about two names that we would both be ok with, but we aren't excited about. That could change with time, but we want to cover all our bases.

Part of the problem is our stringent criteria. Every name has to hold up to pretty rigorous tests.

Test #1: We like strong, traditional names. Ben, Will, Kate... Names that you could imagine being your teacher or doctor or senator. (Lord, help us if that last one happens...) It can be unusual, but not weird or made up.

Test #2: It needs to be a family name. All 5 of us have family names, either for first or middle names. Since we are using his Chinese name as his middle name, it needs to be his first name.

Test #3: This one is weird, and if it came down to it, I would probably ditch it if I found something I loved, but here it is - It needs to NOT begin with an A, B, K, T, or W. I initial water bottles, lunchboxes, jackets, toothbrushes, and all sorts of other things when they are semi-identical. So, to keep my life easy, I would prefer if it did not start with one of the above letters.

Test#4 & #5: I am putting these two together because these are Tim's requirements. And this is my blog, not his. He wants it to be one syllable (or able to be shortened to one syllable, a la Benjamin, William, Kathryn, & Timothy), and he wants it to start with a consonant.

Since my name is not one syllable and does not start with a consonant, I am not sure how I feel about those two tests. A little insulted maybe? Right now, my favorite name for Yin Tao does not pass test #4 or #5, but I am still trying to convince Tim it is perfect.

So, we are looking for suggestions that pass our tests, especially numbers 1 and 2. I know I have many extended relatives and hometown friends who read here (and are maybe familiar with either side of our family tree?), but never leave a comment. This is your chance to come out of the shadows! I even have comments set to allow anonymous! Heck, even if you are a complete lurker, feel free to jump right in:)

And the winner will forever go down in family tales as the-person-who-thought-of-your-name, just like Shawn K. came up with Ben, and Jason W. suggested Will. (I get credit for Kate, since I decided on it when I was about 14.)

Come on! Let's play the Name Game!